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Price pleased with first look at expanded replay

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Conger's RBI single 3:51

3/9/14: Hank Conger singles to right, scoring Erick Aybar to put the Angels on the scoreboard

By Barry M. Bloom
/
MLB.com |

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Sunday's game was the first for the Reds this spring during which the new instant replay challenge system was in play, and manager Bryan Price utilized and lost his challenge on a tag play at second base during the fifth inning.

Hank Conger knocked in Erick Aybar with a ground single to short right field. Roger Bernadina made his throw to the plate, and as Aybar scored, catcher Brayan Pena caught the peg a few steps toward the first-base line and tried to toss out Conger at second.

After a review of 2 minutes, 15 seconds, the call was upheld by umpire Gerry Davis, viewing it on site in a truck. Under the new rule, Price lost his ability to challenge another play before the seventh inning, although the umpires can use their discretion to have any play reviewed.

"It worked out really well, actually," Price said after the Reds dropped a 3-1 decision to the Angels at Tempe Diablo Stadium. "We didn't get the call overturned, but we got a chance to have more dialogue with the umpires. As far as the protocol goes, going out there and engaging and kind of understanding the dos and don'ts.

"One thing that was terrific was that they kind of conferred first so that we didn't have to unnecessarily use a challenge if maybe [another] umpire had a clearer vantage point and overturned that call before using a challenge. And that puts the onus on the other manager. Pretty interesting stuff."

Price said he was told that four replay angles were viewed in the truck and that all were inconclusive. Another angle that showed the play was conclusively called right was not fed to the truck, he added.

"Because of the inconclusive angles, they couldn't overturn the call," he said. "But the one angle that was conclusive provided the same result anyway. It all worked out."

During the regular season, all calls will be made by an umpiring crew stationed in a replay studio at Major League Baseball Advanced Media offices in New York.

"They're getting less confusing as we're absorbing it, trying it every day," said Angels manager Mike Scioscia, whose club has been involved in multiple replay games this spring. "I think the whole logistics of seeing the replay, getting it to the umpire, will be better during the season because of the ability to see the play from many angles, hopefully in a timely fashion, from New York."